Since collapsing at the end of April the S&P500 has rallied, dropped and generally churned in a way at once nauseating and dull. The news seems to get ever worse yet the market simply refuses to collapse or, for that matter, climb a "wall of worry". Stocks are simply stuck, rattling between the mid and low 1,300 area.
Through it all there's been one strategy that's worked. It's hard to execute, embarrassingly simple and a Wall Street cliche': Buy the dips and sell the rips. That's it. If you've been buying when stocks are down 1%, then selling them into rallies, you've made money while others have struggled.
This isn't a stock picker's market. It's a macro-driven, sector play market. Sectors rise and fall as a group, driven by macro news rather than stock-specific factors. That makes it a brutal market to hedge but a decent place to trade.
I'm not giving advice but I like the idea of selling S&P 500 at the 1,360 - 1,370 level and buying 1,330 - 1,315. You can make a case for other key areas on the chart and I won't fight you. The most important part of trading off charts is not changing strategies halfway through a trade. Stick with whatever you choose when entering the position; don't get stuck long a falling knife, looking for the next imaginary support level.
Another option is going the beach and awaiting further instructions. There's a lot of 2012 left and the process of investing or trading never really ends. Taking a break is perfectly acceptable. Since I'm here I'm going to be picking away at it by buying the plunge and selling the lunge. When it's red I'm going in, when it's green I'm stopping. I plan to be greedy when others are fearful.
